Keeping our homes comfortable year-round isn’t self-indulgence. For many people, it’s a step towards staying healthy. For example, air conditioners help people sleep better, enjoy better air quality, lower stress levels, and improve mood.
If you’re planning to install a central air conditioner this year, you have other options.
This article focuses on two popular cooling solutions—the central heat pump vs. the ductless heat pump. Take a minute and explore your options to prepare to make a critical decision about keeping your home comfortable and safe.
What Is a Heat Pump?
If you’re looking for an energy-efficient heating and cooling option that works well in most climates, a heat pump is excellent.
Using electricity, heat pumps transfer heat from cool spaces to warm spaces. They collect heat from the air, water, or ground outside your home.
It’s similar to the way a refrigerator works.
During the cooling season, heat pumps move heat from indoors to the outside. During the cold months, heat pumps move heat from the outdoors into your home.
Heat pumps transfer rather than generate heat, making them an efficient alternative to conventional furnaces and air conditioners.
How a Central Heat Pump Works
Central heat pumps and ductless heat pumps work on the same principle. Remember, they transfer rather than create heat.
If you choose a central heat pump, your system will consist of:
- Outdoor unit
- Central indoor unit
- Ductwork
The condenser or compressor unit sits outside your home on a concrete pad. Inside your home, the central air unit pumps air through the ductwork.
In climates where temperatures vary, people often install a hybrid unit. This allows the heat pump to do most of the heating and cooling. Should temperatures drop below freezing, a furnace would then take over.
Unless you decide to install a hybrid unit, a central heat pump replaces central heat and air. The equipment sits in the same spot and uses the same air ducts and thermostat.
What Is a Ductless Heat Pump?
A ductless mini-split heat pump makes an excellent option for small homes or homes where you don’t need to heat or cool specific areas all the time.
Here’s how a ductless heat pump works.
Like central heat pumps, ductless heat pumps have two main components:
- Outdoor compressor/condenser
- Indoor air-handling unit
In both systems, a conduit connects the outdoor and indoor units. The primary difference is that ductwork isn’t used to circulate the conditioned air.
The indoor air handling unit is also much different from a central heat pump.
Typically, installers either mount the indoor unit on a wall or ceiling, although you may also find floor-standing models. Each aid handler heats or cools a room rather than circulating air throughout an entire house (unless it’s tiny).
For homes where you want to cool multiple rooms, you must install multiple air handlers. However, you would need only one heat pump.
A ductless mini-split heat pump makes an excellent option for small homes or homes where you don’t need to heat or cool specific areas all the time.
Are You Ready to Install a Heat Pump?
Whether you have an existing central heat and air system or plan a new build, a central heat pump should be considered. It’s one way you can keep your home comfortable and healthy year-round. A heat pump is also more efficient.
The experts at MetFab Heating and Cooling are available to install your new heat pump. We also service and repair all heating and cooling systems.
Contact us today and request service.